


The Other President

by Birger



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies)
Genre: Cold War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Democracy, F/M, Freedom, In-Universe RPF, MACUSA | Magical Congress of the United States of America, Muggle/Wizard Relations, Nuclear Weapons, Original Percival Graves Lives, Post-Movie 1: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Soviet Union, Western Civilization, Wizarding Politics (Harry Potter), Wizarding World of the United States of America, World War III
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:00:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24791989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Birger/pseuds/Birger
Summary: In an effort to abolish Rappaport's Law, Percival Graves now the new president of MACUSA, and his wife Seraphina Picquery holds a historic meeting with none other than the No-Maj president John F. Kennedy. But in the process discovers that they have a far bigger responsibility resting on their shoulders.
Relationships: Original Percival Graves/Seraphina Picquery
Comments: 5
Kudos: 12





	The Other President

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to review and point out historical inaccuracies

15th October 1962, The White House, Washington DC

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States of America, sat in Oval Office of the White House, cleaning up the puke he had vomited on his desk, with a blanket. The Addison Disease was truly getting on him. He could’ve of course asked one of the cleaning staff members to do it for him but for some reason, he chose not to do it and decided to do the dirty work himself. 

What kind of president was he who cleaned up his own puke? A unique one most certainly. 

The Bays of Pig Invasion had failed and the already tense relationship between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist States was escalating every day. 

The threat of nuclear war increased every day and every decision Jack made was crucial for the survival of the free democratic world. What on earth was he going to do get his nation out of the mess he had created?  
He had to take personal responsibility. It was after all he who had ordered the placement of missiles in Italy and Turkey. It was he who had ordered The Pays of Pig Invasion which had failed catastrophically. 

He was failing his people who were meaninglessly fighting against a losing battle in Vietnam with no clear end in sight. 

Not only that but the endless amount of unfaithful affairs he had in recent time had begun to weigh on his conscience. It was only a matter of time before his wife Jackie would find out.

It was indeed a deep grave Jack had dug for himself and instead of climbing out he only kept digging. 

Jack almost missed the days when he was a soldier in the U.S marine stationed in the South Pacific during the last days of World War ll. Back then it was all about following orders and doing what was right. Nowadays having become the leader of the most powerful free country earth, things were not so simple any more. Whatever decision he made appeared to result in catastrophe in one way or another. 

President Kennedy’s silence was broken by the sound of steel on marble. He swung around to see the fireplace screen slide away from the great unaided. He jumped as bright green flames burst into life where the last fire lay dead. Kennedy watched, mouth open, as a black, silver-haired, woman in strange black robes appeared in the flames, spinning as fast as a top. Seconds later, she stepped out of the fire and placed his feet on the wood floor. With intense, dark eyes she looked at Kennedy, brushed ash from the sleeves of her strange black attire. 

I can’t possibly be imagining this. 

“Who are you?” Jack asked completely stunned. "If you are from some black liberation movement, please be calm. There is no need to be hostile. I promise I will give your community better rights, just wait and see. "

“Don't worry. I am a friend Mr. Kennedy, ” the black woman replied and somewhat amused at his unexpected answer. “Although I would love to see you fulfill your promise. In the world where I come from it doesn’t matter what ethnicity or gender you belong to. Your actions are all the matters. I don’t mean to be rude but your world has a long road to walk until you catch up to ours. ”

“Your ‘world’?!?! What in god's name are you talking about, lady?”  
“Be patient, Mr. Kennedy. All your questions shall soon be answered.”

Once again the fireplace filled with green flames and a white man’s face appeared in the fire beneath the marble mantelpiece. A handsome white man with black hair and dressed in a fancy three-part suit and a long overcoat stepped into the oval office. 

“Good day? Can I help you? ” Jack said back down unsure how to respond to this weird turn of events. Was this his doom? Should he call security?

The white man strode forward, shook Kennedy’s hand stiffly, and spoke in a calm and cautious voice.

“Good morning Mr. President. My name is Percival Graves, President of MACUSA, the Magical Congress of the United States of America. “

“I am Seraphina Picquery, Percival’s wife, and the former President of MACUSA during the 1920s. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kennedy, ” the black woman said shaking his hand. 

“Seraphina Picquery, the first lady of the Magical….?” Jack repeated, his eyes never leaving hers. Out of all things he has been through in his life nothing had come close to this. He had never felt so unprepared before. 

“We have a lot to explain to you, Mr. Kennedy. How about we sit down and discuss?” She asked.

“Yes, that sounds like an excellent idea Madam Picquery. Please have a seat? Can I offer you something? Coffee, vine? I’ll call my butler... ”  
“No Mr. Kennedy. No one else can know that we are here. This meeting must remain a secret. Do you understand? ” The man named Percival said sternly.

" Yes, Mr. Graves. I fully understand,” Jack said moving toward the couch.

“I imagine you will find this a strange briefing, Mr. President,” she said.

“I have seen many strange things in my days but this takes the cake. Did you say something about magic? You don’t happen to be witches do? Not that I mean anything ill by that. ”

“Yes I am a witch and my husband is a wizard, “ Madam Picquery explained.

“That is just incredible. I remember back in the war when I was fighting the Japanese in the South Pacific, I saw a dragon I think. Everyone thought I was crazy but I swear it looked so real. ”

“It must have been an Antipodean Opaleye, ” President Graves remarked.

“So you’re magicians you say. Show me what you can do.”

Graves stretched out his hand and said; “Wingardium Leviosa”

The couch, Jack sat on began to levitate up in the air.

To add to the show Madam Picquery pulled out a curious stick from her robes waved it in the air.

“Avis Fortunae.”

Suddenly several bluebirds were conjured out of thin air and flew around Jack and the levitating couch.

“Incredible.”

Graves lowered his hand and returned the couch to the floor and all of the sudden the birds vanished into confetti.

“Unbelievable, just unbelievable. I wish my wife and kids were here to see this. ”

“About that. You can’t tell anyone about our existence. Not even your family or your senior staff, ” Picquery explained.

“Why not? I think we could all use some magic in our lives.”

“In the Wizarding World, we have an official law called for the Statute of Secrecy. It is the most important of all of our laws since it separates the 2 worlds of wizards of No-Majs, ” Graves explained to his non-magical counterpart.

“No-Majs?'”

“It is slang for non-magical people like you, Mr. President. ” Picquery explained. 

“Excuse for asking this so bluntly, but aren’t you technically breaking this law by talking to me? ” 

Picquery made a wave with that stick and suddenly three glasses appeared out of thin air.

Graves opened his right hand flat and said; “Aquamenti,” filling all three glasses with water.

“During the late 17th century, at the beginning of the time of the Statute of Secrecy, it was decided that – at least in the Western World – the rulers of a state were to be informed us witches and wizards were still around but that they had gone into secrecy and we lived our own lives separate from non-magical people. The United States became an exception to this because unlike in Europe, the witch-hunting never ended here. There are still organizations in this nation who would love nothing but to see all of wizardkind exposed and eradicated. Because of this, we've forbidden fraternization and marriages with No-Majs and separated magical children born into No-Maj families."

"Wait. So you mean that there are wizards born into normal sorry I meant non-magical families? I wonder how that works, " Jack remarked curiously.

"Yes. No-Majborns we call them. They are quite discriminated against in other parts of the world such as Europe and the Middle East, but here in the United States, we've desperately tried everything to make them feel as welcome as possible. That was the least we can do after separating from their biological families, " Percival Graves said with a deep sense of regret in his tone as if he was recalling some bitter memories.

"That sounds horrible. I could never imagine having one of my kids taken from me and my wife. "

"Indeed. However, we realize now that this extreme segregation was a mistake from the beginning, and through my presidency, we intend to put an end to all of these "extra rules." John Fitzgerald Kennedy, you are the first No-Maj President in the United States to be informed about the Wizarding World, ” Percival Graves explained. 

"Wait so if leaders of other countries know about your world, does that mean Nikita Khrushchev and Mao Zedong have wizards on their side? "

"No, the Russian Ministry of Magic has broken all contact with the government of the Soviet Union since the death of Vladimir Lenin. Communism and magic don't go hand in hand, the Ministry reasoned, " Graves explained. 

"God. I start to admire you, wizards, more and more, " Jack said smiling. 

"The Chinese Ministry did the same with their No-Maj counterpart of Mainland China but have remained in contact with the President of Formosa Island and the Governor of Hong Kong, " Madam Picquery filled in. 

"That sounds excellent. Now I have to call Chiang Kai Shek so we together can figure out how to beat those damn commies. It is going to be a lot easier with you wizards on our side."

"Mr. Kennedy. We are not here to help fight your wars. The International Confederation Wizards, our United Nations, strictly prohibits us from doing so, " Madam Picquery objected. 

"Then what is the point of informing us "No-Maj" leaders if you can't help us solve real issues? It seems rather counterproductive, " Jack responded with great frustration. 

"Thrust us. We will come to your help in times of crisis but only if it concerns magic, " Graves answered. 

"But does it matter if magic is involved or not? You can do unbelievable things. Together we could bring an end to communism, the greatest evil of the free democratic world. Call your Chinese and Russian wizard friends and ask them to hypnotize respective communist dictator to lay down their weapons and liberate their people, I don't know. Just do something and save the life of billions of innocent "No-Majs". This wizard UN you were talking about, Madam Picquery don't need to know anything. We'll keep it all a secret. "

"A no is a no, Mr. Kennedy. Like my husband said we are only obligated to interfere in times of crisis in which magic is involved and which concerns both wizards and No-Majs, " the witch answered sternly and explicitly. "If you're not willing to accept that we will wipe your memory of this meeting and you will not see us again. "

"But the Soviets are threatening with nuclear war for christ's sake. In just a week or so the entire world, both yours and ours will be blown in pieces."

Graves thought for a few seconds and answered.

"What exactly do you mean with 'nuclear war?'"

That was the first time during this conversation either Graves or Picquery asked anything about Jack's world. It had otherwise been the other way around. 

"Have you ever heard about the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?" The No-Maj president asked.

"Yes, the Japanese Minister for Magic mentioned something about that. Two No-Maj cities were blown up with a few wizard casualties. A truly horrific event, I must say, " Graves said bitterly, shaking his head. 

"God. Your world is too damn interesting. Anyway, during an event, we in the No-Maj world call for "World War ll", the free and democratic civilization were challenged by 3 rising fascist superpowers; Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and the Empire of Japan. "

"Mr. Kennedy. Please you don't need to tell the whole story. We wizards fought in a similar war in Continental Europe during the same time, " Graves said with a bittersweet smile on his face. 

Shocked by that revelation Jack continued talking about the No-Maj conflict. 

"Ok. Even after the defeat of the Germans and Italians; Imperial Japan refused to lay down their weapons and instead continued their warmongering. My predecessor Harry S. Truman decided to put an end to all the madness by dropping the first atomic bombs in existence at 2 Japanese cities. It was a tragic event indeed which came at the price of many innocent lives. But, but, the war needed to end. Even though many who would like to disagree I firmly believe we as Americans did the right choice, no matter the cost it took. It was an atrocity committed for the 'Greater Good' to put it quite simply. '"

"I get what you're saying but I'm not sure if I agree. You've started to sound like a particularly nasty wizard I used to know during my Auror days, " the other President said with great skepticism as if he was recalling some horrific memories from his past. 

"What on earth were we supposed to do? The Empire of Japan just wouldn't stop doing what they were doing. There was no other way and it got the job done. "

"Both Percival and I have a lot of war experience ourselves, and we get that in war there's no truly peaceful outcome, no matter the choice you make, " Picquery said understandingly.

"Mr. Kennedy, we're getting off-topic. How does this relate to what the Russian No-Majs are doing?" President Graves asked eager to change the subject. 

"You see after the war ended, the Soviet Union began to produce similar weapons of mass destruction to counter America's role in a further globalized world. They haven't used them so far, luckily. But tensions have aroused and some people are saying that the U.S and the U.S.S.R are stuck in some kind of 'cold war.' I got to know quite recently that the Russians have placed missiles in Cuba, their communist ally. Those missiles are of a similar kind to the atomic bombs we dropped in Japan, and we're suspecting that they will use them to bomb Washington D.C and bring an end to our nation. If nothing is done then those missiles will be fired and the world as we know it might end. The question is what will you as wizards do about the situation?"

"Merlin's beard, I don't know what to say. Is their no peaceful way you can solve all of this?" Picquery asked worrisomely. 

"I don't know Madam. I'm trying to find a way but I haven't found it yet, " Jack answered cleaning up the sweat from his forehead with his right hand. 

"I'm not sure how we can help you but we will think about it I promise. How about we meet you tomorrow at the same time so we can discuss this matter further? " Graves suggested. 

"Not tomorrow. I'll be busy with Congress meetings. Our Congress that is. The No-Maj Congress. How about tomorrow night instead? "

"I don't know but I think it might work. I'll be attending a meetup with all the leaders of the smaller wizard's state councils late in the evening, but hopefully, it won't take too much time, " the other President explained. 

Picquery put her purse on the table and pulled out a large portrait of George Washington, identical to the one that already hanged in the Oval Office. 

Percival Graves waved his left hand and said; 

"Accio Non-magical portrait of George Washington."

The portrait that hanged at the wall flew towards them and into Madam Picquery's purse. 

"Your purse. It is bigger on the inside, " Jack commented. 

"Oh, that's nothing. One of my friends from England owns a suitcase that contains an entire natural reserve, " the witch replied. 

"Most impressive use of magic I've witnessed. " Graves added. 

"Why did you take down the portrait of our first president? What is different with the new one?" The No-Maj asked. 

"Good day Mr. Kennedy. I will inform you and all future No-Maj presidents of the United States of America about potential meetings with your wizarding counterparts, " the portrait said to Jack's surprise.

"He spoke. George Washington spoke to me. How?" 

"In the wizarding world, we have a special liquid that gives life to portraits and paintings. However, they will only get as much conscience and personality its the painter gives them. This one doesn't have much too come up with. George Washington died for over a century a half ago and due to our segregation laws we don't have records how he was as a person, " Graves said. 

"That is kind of sad to hear. There's much I would've liked to ask him about, " the No-Maj said. 

"I understand. Well, it was to meet you, Mr. Kennedy, " the other president said. "But it is time for us to leave now. We'll see you again tomorrow night if nothing happens. " 

"It was nice to meet you too president Percival Graves, and you too Madam Picquery. I look forward to future meetings. We have much to discuss, " Jack replied shaking their hands enthusiastically. 

"Indeed Mr. Kennedy. The world won't save itself, " the black woman said. "One thing more. Would you like to take a photo with my husband? This is one of the defining moments in the history of MACUSA. The beginning of a new era. It is worth saving. "

"Of course, Madam Picquery. "

She took a camera out of her purse.

Percival and Jack stood with Oval Office desk and window behind their backs, as they shook hands. Picquery took a picture of them, capturing this historic moment.

After they were finished, Percival Graves went to the fireplace and with a snap of his fingers lit it with red flames. Then he took out a bag from his pocket and threw some green powder into the fire making it change color. 

The wizard stepped into the fireplace, unhurt, and said; "Goodbye Mr. Kennedy. See you soon. MACUSA HEADQUARTERS, WOOLWORTH BUILDING, MANHATTAN. "

Now the wizard had fully disintegrated and disappeared out of the office. 

As his wife was about to follow suit, the No-Maj president said;

"I've got to say; a black female president in 1920s. That proves we 'No-Majs' have a lot to learn from your world. "

" I am sure us witches have a lot to learn to yours as well, Mr. Kennedy. "

Madam Picquery smiled and shouted; "MACUSA HEADQUARTERS, WOOLWORTH BUILDING, MANHATTAN, " thus disappearing into the green flames. 

John F. Kennedy was now left alone in the Oval Office, now knowing that he not only had one but two worlds to save from utter destruction.


End file.
